I received mine today and hooked it up to my Oppo 93 to a Benq W1070. First impression, not overly impressed. Added just a tad of oomph. (hidef at 50) Switched to Demo mode split and watched a bit of content. It wasn't that big of a night and day difference. I then switched darbee on and off and that is where I truly appreciated the value. Landscapes scenes in the movie Australia were sharper and details in the faces were more apparent. I also played back Catching Fire and appreciated the added punch.

Overall, not as dramatic of an effect that i've seen on you tube, etc. I think they boost it up to 120% full pop or something. The effect for me is more subtle. I then switched to Directv and not a huge improvement. I'll continue to play with it. I'm happy to add it to my setup. For those on the fence, I would put the money on something else that needs to be upgraded prior to adding the darbee. Once you are happy with your video and audio, then I would suggest to add the darbee.

I received mine today and hooked it up to my Oppo 93 to a Benq W1070. First impression, not overly impressed. Added just a tad of oomph. (hidef at 50) Switched to Demo mode split and watched a bit of content. It wasn't that big of a night and day difference. I then switched darbee on and off and that is where I truly appreciated the value. Landscapes scenes in the movie Australia were sharper and details in the faces were more apparent. I also played back Catching Fire and appreciated the added punch.

Overall, not as dramatic of an effect that i've seen on you tube, etc. I think they boost it up to 120% full pop or something. The effect for me is more subtle. I then switched to Directv and not a huge improvement. I'll continue to play with it. I'm happy to add it to my setup.

It's only natural to expect a night-and-day difference when installing any new piece of equipment. When we turn it on, we want to immediately know that it's working and doing something dramatic. Otherwise, what's the point of it?

However, what you should try to keep in mind here is that you don't actually want the Darbee to change what a movie looks like. The movie is what it is, and should look like what the director shot it to look like. If you add processing to dramatically alter what a movie looks like, that's actually a bad thing.

The Darbee does not change what a movie looks like. It provides a subtle enhancement to make detail that's already in the picture more clearly visible. The effect can be equated to upgrading your TV/projector to the next model up. Considering how expensive it would be to upgrade your display, adding a $300 box that provides a similar effect is actually a pretty good value.

Ideally, Darbee processing should not draw attention to itself. You want to watch the movie, not the processor box. After a short while, you should forget that it's even on at all. It just does its thing in the background, making everything look a little bit better without you worrying about it.

Before you installed the Darbee, did you fiddle with your TV's settings every time you put in a new movie? No, you did your initial calibration, chose the proper settings, and stopped thinking about it anymore. Same deal here.

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For those on the fence, I would put the money on something else that needs to be upgraded prior to adding the darbee. Once you are happy with your video and audio, then I would suggest to add the darbee.

So there is no way to switch back and forth to see what the effect is?

Per the FAQ:Does the Darblet still process the image if I set the Darbee Level to zero? Would I then get the same image that I would see if the Darblet were not in the chain?
If you set the Darbee Level to zero, the Darblet simply passes the input to the output untouched, so, yes, you will then see the exact original image. In fact, toggling the Darbee button on and off is an excellent way to compare the effect of Darbee Visual Presence in-place on a single screen.

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When toggling the Darbee button on and off the power remains on. The Darblet consumes less than five watts of power.

I found the easiest way to compare the original and Darby'd image was by pausing a movie on a really good spot. A image/scene that has incredible detail. Then switch the Darby On/Off to compare. Doing the split screen or sweep didn't work for me. I needed to focus on a certain area of the image and then switch the Darby on and off to see the difference.
This was also how I set my level. I paused on a scene that had a perfectly clear face shot, actually did this several times with different faces. and adjusted the Darby on the skin. What I found is that the Darby would introduce what looks like a bad complexion on the actors faces if turned too high. I ended up at HD-35.

I found the easiest way to compare the original and Darby'd image was by pausing a movie on a really good spot ... What I found is that the Darby would introduce what looks like a bad complexion on the actors faces if turned too high. I ended up at HD-35.

Good approach. Another good one is to put the Darbee into split screen demo mode, and then pause on the highly detailed Blu-Ray image of your choice. Then play forward in slow motion, and watch the object pass from one side of the demo to the other, and compare exactly what things look like on each side of the magic line.

As you mention, a facial close-up is full of detail and information. High quality CGI is another great test opportunity, maybe something like an Enterprise close-up from Into Darkness. Not that I've ever done that, of course.

Every once in a while, quite inexplicably, things actually go according to plan.

I agree, facial close-ups are excellent for assessing Darbee's picture enhancement. The best I found is from the movie, King Kong, the one with Adrien Brody, Jack Black and Naomi Watts. There is a scene where Jack Black is on the ground and his face takes up nearly the entire scene. There is dirt on his face, hair, sweat, grime, etc. Going back and forth over the paused picture will give a good indication of what Darbee can do. It sort of boosts the clarity and adds definition to the subtle characteristics like eyebrow hairs and facial lines. There are a couple good shots of the Wizard in Lord of the Rings and also of the priest in the 5th Element that are excellent for this facial close-up test as well.

I have a Oppo 103 and wish I had the Darbee processing. I can either get the 103D or add a Darblet to the 103.

IYO, is there any advantage to having the Darblet as a separate device rather than getting the processing that's built into the 103D?

thanks

I was in the same boat with an Oppo 93. Do I get a 103D or add a stand alone darblet???

With the recent price drop on the darblet to $200, I would look at what you would pay for the 103D. I tried to get a refurbished 103D but there is a waiting list. There wasn't back in August when I first was looking. I decided to purchase a stand alone and not go through the hassle of selling the 93 and probably end up paying more than $200 for the 103d at the end of the day.

For performance, the advantage to the 103d is the ability to use the input for other devices for scaling, etc... but limits you to one. If you put the darblet at the end of the chain, it works for everything. I don't think you'll have any performance difference with the 103d versus the standalone.

I was in the same boat with an Oppo 93. Do I get a 103D or add a stand alone darblet???

With the recent price drop on the darblet to $200, I would look at what you would pay for the 103D. I tried to get a refurbished 103D but there is a waiting list. There wasn't back in August when I first was looking. I decided to purchase a stand alone and not go through the hassle of selling the 93 and probably end up paying more than $200 for the 103d at the end of the day.

For performance, the advantage to the 103d is the ability to use the input for other devices for scaling, etc... but limits you to one. If you put the darblet at the end of the chain, it works for everything. I don't think you'll have any performance difference with the 103d versus the standalone.

For performance, the advantage to the 103d is the ability to use the input for other devices for scaling, etc... but limits you to one. If you put the darblet at the end of the chain, it works for everything. I don't think you'll have any performance difference with the 103d versus the standalone.

Let us know your thoughts.

That statement threw me. My understanding is the Darbee processing is applied to both HDMI inputs on the 103D.

That statement threw me. My understanding is the Darbee processing is applied to both HDMI inputs on the 103D.

Thanks

My bad. I forgot about the HDMI input on the front of the oppo 103d. So you could have two devices hooked up to the 103d. That isn't enough for me and I went with the darblet at the end of the video chain.

I have a Yamaha RX-V777BT which serves as my switch processor for my DishTV receiver, Cable STB/DVR and Oppo 103. I have everything going into it via HDMI with my output HDMI going to the Darbee. From the Darbee I have a 35' HDMI cable run to my Epson 6030. If I play a 3D disk I use the Oppo HDMI-1 directly out to the projector, by-passing the Yamaha AVR completely (except for audio which I feed it via the Oppo's HDMI-2).

There have been times when I have experimented with regular 1080P blu ray disks (non 3D) out to the projector via HDMI-1 and then doing an AB test using the Yamaha output through Darbee and then on to the Epson. Quite frankly, I see very little difference and this is viewing on a 106" Carada screen. I think the upconversion capability of my Yamaha is very, very good so I have not needed to send any of my other components through the Oppo for processing. The Yamaha coupled with the Darbee is all I need for a fantastic picture.

Will a Darbee clean up what to me seems like a soft picture on NCIS? Also wondering if anyone has had issues with reliability. The most recent review on Amazon says theirs died after a few months. I've been thinking about getting one to go with my Panasonic 65VT60.

Will a Darbee clean up what to me seems like a soft picture on NCIS? Also wondering if anyone has had issues with reliability. The most recent review on Amazon says theirs died after a few months. I've been thinking about getting one to go with my Panasonic 65VT60.

There are certainly reports of some Darbees having issues but you can find that with any electronic equipment. Chances are that if you get a problem unit it will develope the problem within the warranty period. I got my unit nearly three years ago and it has been almost problem free and is always running. I have had the unit reset itself twice to factory defaults since I got it but no other problems. I haven't even had to replace the remote battery yet.

It will do much to sharpen a soft picture on NCIS. I've used the Darbee with both a Panasonic 65ST50 and my current Samsung 64F8500. Did more to help the Panasonic than the Samsung because I think the Samsung has a somewhat sharper picture to begin with.

I have a problem with my darbee. I recently truned of my mains power to allow an electrician to do some wiring work. When I restored power my darbee no longer works (it was on a surge proteceted powerboard and all my other gear is fine). When I plug the unit into power the green led will blink momentarily then all leds are 'dead'. Any thougths on what I can do?